I threw in the towel.

I’m a little disappointed that I couldn’t finish The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry. I really liked the way the author would turn a phrase. However, I couldn’t understand the story she was telling.

This book had too many words for me. After two weeks, I tapped out on page 132.

I remember reading about a man, who wrote something like, “Forgive me, I didn’t have the time to write a shorter letter.”

It takes a lot of time to write well. Ken repeatedly tells me that I repeat myself, so I know the struggle is real.

With so many books in the world, I often wonder how a particular one ends up in my hand.

I take recommendations seriously — I like a nice cover design, and font size matters to me. I’ll also look to see if the book won a prize. I like The Man Booker, Canada Reads, or The Giller winners, more than Pulitzer prize winners.

The Essex Serpent had a cool cover, good size font, was recommended, still it will be the first book in the DNF category of 2019.

I’m happy to push my limits with a story, yet apparently, I have limits.